A MIRACLE IN CONGRESS

[Jeffersons Ghost]

MILITARY BUDGET SHIFTED TO SCHOOLS AND HEALTHCARE BY NEW BILL

Yesterday, a group of courageous U.S. Representatives introduced the “Common Sense Budget Act, ” which would take $60 Billion in wasted Pentagon funding and spend it instead on schools, doctors, and stuff we care about.

This money could save 6 million kids who die of starvation each year in impoverished countries. It could rebuild our public schools and provide health insurance for our kids who don’t have it. It could do all this and a lot more, every year. And it’s exactly what tens of thousands of TrueMajority members have been asking for.

With a group of respected business and military leaders, we’ve planned a yearlong campaign to spread that common sense across the country. Can you donate today to make it happen?
https://secure.truemajority.org/03/csba_fundraiser

Our partner in this campaign, Business Leaders for Sensible Priorities, has already established field offices in Iowa and New Hampshire. Full-page newspaper ads have been prepared to pressure the House and Senate budget chairmen to pay attention. We’re making plans for delivering the 40,000+ petitions signed by TrueMajority members like you asking for a sensible, moral federal budget.

ADDED ON EDIT - But it will take $50,000 to keep the momentum going for the first half of this year, so contribute as much as you can. If you simply wish to join our ongoing petition signing efforts to curb wasteful defense spending visit this link. Participation in the program literally takes only a few minutes each month.

http://action.truemajority.org/truemajorityaction/join.html?r=XpwxST715mrVE&

Yes, you’ll be taking on a big job; the habit of giving away HALF of the federal discretionary budget to defense contractors developed over decades and won’t be broken overnight. But look at the resources we have on our side:

President Reagan's former Asst. Secretary of Defense,<3>
a whole list of retired admirals and generals (including the former commander of the U.S. Second Fleet),<4>
650 current and former CEOs and other business leaders,<5>
...and the majority of the American public.<6>
And don’t forget, some representatives are already so convinced this is the right thing to do that they were willing to stick their necks out in an election year.

"What better serves the cause of national security? Investment in first responders, energy independence and global nutrition ... or billions that we're still pouring into the F-22A Raptor, which was designed to outpace Soviet fighter jets?" — Common Sense Budget Act sponsor Lynn Woolsey (D-CA)

Thanks for taking on this important work,

Matt Holland
TrueMajorityACTION's Online Director

references
http://thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/030806/liberals.html

http://www.sensiblepriorities.org/csba/text.php

[Selatius]

1. It's a small step in the right direction.

I'm in favor of radically raising education standards to match those of European systems, increasing the number of qualified teachers in our public schools, and cutting the size of classrooms in this country by roughly half. I'd also be in favor of shifting student loan dollars from the Federal Family Education Loan program to the William D. Ford Direct Loan program. The days of subsidizing private for-profit lenders should be brought to an end. The private bankers need to be removed from the equation. Nobody should be profiting off of the education of our students, and we should study ways to radically increase competition between colleges in order to aggressively slash the costs of college education and bring tuition inflation down to sustainable levels.

I'm also be in favor of some form of socialized health care. It could come at the national level, or it could come at the state level like efforts in Massachusetts. It could even come in the form of government assistance in the establishment of more non-profit health insurance companies owned by the people for the people that offers the same services but with lower costs due to no profit mark-up and the repeal of laws which could hinder the progress of these non-profits.

[Jeffersons Ghost]

3. Here's a way to attain those goals, Selatus

KEEP IN MIND THE FOLLOWING TRANSCRIPT IS OUTDATED. THE DEFENSE BUDGET IS CURRENTLY AROUND $500 BILLION A YEAR.

HERE'S THE CARTOON IF YOU HAVE HIGH-SPEED OR DON'T MIND WAITING...http://www.truemajority.org/oreos/

Oreo Transcript

TECHNICIAN:

We've got a picture.


BEN:

Hi, I'm Ben Cohen (or a reasonable facsimile thereof). I started Ben and Jerry's, but there are some things in life that are even more important than ice cream. So now I'm working with TrueMajority.org, over 300,000 of us that are taking America back (from the current craziness).



Here's one of the things we're working on - the federal budget effects everybody but it's so big that nobody can figure it out.


FEMALE AUDIENCE MEMBER:

Federal budget...What do I care?


BEN:

Whadda you care? It's your money. And it's why college scholarships have dried up, our public schools are broke, and there's 12 million kids growing up in poverty. Well, these are serious problems. Now, I'm a dessert guy. So when I'm faced with a serious problem, I think about...dessert!



In this case, Oreo cookies!



Let's say one cookie equals 10 billion dollars. The Pentagon's annual budget is forty cookies or four hundred billion dollars a year. So how much do you think we spend on this other stuff?



Not much. And that's why our schools don't work and children are left out in the cold. The government makes it sound like it's impossible to solve these problems, but it's not. Here's how we could do it...



Just take 5 cookies a year off this pile. Use 1 cookie to rebuild our schools, 1 to eliminate our need for mideast oil, and 2 to feed all of the six million starving kids around the world. Then take the last cookie, (you've all done this before) and use half to provide health insurance and a quarter to provide Headstart for every kid that needs it. You can eat the other 1/4 cookie. But remember, that's 2.5 billion dollars. Try not to choke!


MALE AUDIENCE MEMBER:

But that's gonna make our armed forces too weak. How are we supposed to pay for our nukes and our new jet fighters and submarines? We'll be vulnerable!


BEN:

Vulnerable to who? Russia, our highest spending potential enemy, spends 7 cookies worth - and they're actually an ally. The military budget of china, the next highest spender, is 5 cookies - and they're a major trading partner.


FEMALE AUDIENCE MEMBER:

What about the axis of evil? We need those cookies to help fight terrorism!


BEN:

Those guys combined spend less than one cookie. Not even a whole cookie!



So as you can see... it's possible to pay for all these social needs, and still have more than enough left over to deal with these guys.


MALE AUDIENCE MEMBER:

You're starting to make sense, ice cream man, but there's gotta be more to it than tossing cookies around. How can I accomplish anything? I'm just one person!


BEN:

Well, we're all just one person. But, TrueMajority puts us all together in such a powerful way that politicians sit up and take notice. So if you want to do something about the way our cookies are crumbling, join TrueMajority. It's free, it's fun, and it only takes about 2 minutes a month.




Thank You Movie


BEN:

Well, Thanks for registering. We've already been successful on rolling back Bush's new nuclear weapons program. And now there's an important election coming up...


DICK CHENEY:

Look at that! He just recruited another one! If we don't keep our eyes on these guys, they could foil our plans!..."


GEORGE W. BUSH:

Jesus, I think he just ate our surveillance budget!




More Info Movie


BEN:

You'll start getting e-alerts from TrueMajority. It takes less than a minute to read the alert. And then, if you agree on the issue, all you need to do is click reply and then send to generate a free fax from you to your congressperson. It's like having a direct line to Washington. We monitor congress 24-7.



Version 1 03/12/04

[Selatius]

7. It makes so much sense. In fact, it makes too much sense.

If I gave people this much a dose of reality, their heads would explode because they haven't been exposed to this kind of common sense coming from government in a long time. :sarcasm:

Honestly, it's a neat way to present the issue to people. If everybody on the board of directors of all major Fortune 500 companies were as conscientious as the folks at Ben & Jerry's, this country would resemble "workers' paradise" compared to our current, harsh reality of greed, corruption, and war.

[Jeffersons Ghost]

8. too true...

If we wait on BIG Business to become responsible for anything other than profits we'll be waiting a very long time to get disappointed... As for building a "workers paradise," the responsibility lies within the buying public... I wish I could say that I ONLY bought goods produced in the U.S. but it wouldn't be true... I try but it's a challenge.

[FrenchieCat]

2. Well, whadayaknow!

[texpatriot2004]

4. Thanks for this post nm

[Jeffersons Ghost]

10. thank you tex

.

[Bake]

5. And in related news, hell just froze over!

Bake

[NativeTexan]

6. If we DON'T raise education standards in this country.....

.....we are doomed to lifetimes of MORE ILLITERATE AND IGNORANT PRESIDENTS!!

AND WE CAN'T RISK ANY MORE OF THIS..........

[Jeffersons Ghost]

9. yep tex...

He's much too stupid to do ANYTHING without guidance... We must also keep in mind that the House and Senate are responsible for his tax cuts to top money holders as living standards decline in the general populace.

[NativeTexan]

11. Very true, and yet, if there was a Democrat in the WH....

.....it would have been next to impossible for them to have accomplished that crap. This is a VAST RIGHT-WING CONSPIRACY, just like the one back in the 90's that repugs scoffed about after Hillary so correctly called them on it!